I have pasted the responses from over 15 cities into this Email. Although
most of the responses are from Northern California, they appear to reflect
the thought processes cities use in developing such a fee.
>From some of the responses, it's obvious that I didn't make it clear we were
interested in cancellation fees if the PARTICIPANT cancels from the
class/rental and requests a refund, not if the CITY ends up canceling a
class or facility rental. Sorry for the confusion.
Bartsch, Kathryn [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
The City of Napa does not have a cancellation fee for refunds for recreation
programs. We only offer a refund if we have cancelled the activity or there
is a medical reason for lack of participation( must be substantiated with
documentation). We have a very generous credit policy that enables us to
keep most customers happy without incurring alot of cost for our division.
Our credit policy allows the credit to be transferable and has no time
limit, most people are satisfied with this. If the activity has not been
canceled by us, there is no medical reason for restricting participation and
they will not take a credit..we require that they submit a letter stating
the reason for their refund request and then it is reviewed. It is unusual
for most people to take the time to go through this process..
Kathy Obayashi-Bartsch, Recreation Superintendent
(707) 257-9529
Donna Mullally [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Cypress has a $5.00 fee for cancelling a class. This amount is deducted
from the refund, so there is no problem policing it. Exceptions are made at
the discretion of the Parks staff. I've seen the fee waived for instance
when a 12 year old is in a class of 6 year olds.
For facility reservations, a deposit is charged up front. If the
reservation is cancelled, the deposit then becomes revenue.
I am not aware of how this was presented to the City Council.
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Hello. The City of Paso Robles Recreation does charge cancellation fees as
follows:
Classes: Flat $7 -- however, participants are allowed to transfer
the fee to another class without incurring the cancellation fee. Therefore,
it is really a "refund" fee - we charge the $7 if we refund.
Facility Rentals: $10 - $25, depending on how close to the event
the rental is cancelled, whether or not we have turned down other use
because the facility is booked, whether or not we have scheduled staff, etc.
Trips: Flat or %, depending on how close to the trip. Again, it
depends on whether or not the spot can be filled, what non-recoverable
expenses have been paid by the City, etc.
Cancellation polices are stated up-front in all cases.
Our cancellation polices have been in effect for some time and we do not
recall exactly what was presented to Council. I would assume it was
presented to cover costs.
Veeda Cumming
Accounting Manager
City of Paso Robles
[EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
805/237-3999 Fax 805/237-6565
Judy Bier [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
No cancellation fee in Selma. However, I like the idea.
Elizabeth Hudson [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
I've added my answers after each question.
Elizabeth Hudson
Finance Director/Treasurer
Town of Danville
1. Does your City have a cancellation fee for recreation classes/facility
rentals? If no, why not?
Yes
2. How is the cancellation fee structured: flat fee, % of tuition/facility
rental, sliding scale based on when cancellation is made? Please list your
cancellation fee amounts.
Just raised it to $10 from $5
3. Have you experienced any difficulty in applying the cancellation fee (or
"policing" for it)?
No
4. When you instituted a cancellation fee, which arguments did you use that
were most persuasive with your City Council?
Recovery of cost & encouraging that only "serious" people
sign up for classes.
Gilmore, Bonnie [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Crystal,
I've forwarded this to our Recreation folks [our R&P Director is my
significant other so I'll bet they respond!] so that they can provide you
with some detail. I was in a meeting yesterday regarding a new automated
class registration system that is being installed as we speak, and I know
that they not only have current policies, but have recently discussed the
whole issue of refunds.
Hope whatever info. they can provide helps.
Bonnie Gilmore
City of Santa Rosa
Jimmie Zimmerman [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
In Vacaville we do not have a cancellation fee at all. In fact we have a
"money back if not satisfied" policy instead. On the one hand it makes
sense to have a fee, but our Community Services Department is reluctant to
charge one. They do not want to alienate any "return customers" based on
one bad experience.
Hope this is helpful.
Jimmie Zimmerman
Revenue Manager
City of Vacaville
(707) 449-5315
Don McVey [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Daly City has the opposite policy. Our rec. classes are "satisfaction
guaranteed", and no refund fee is charged.
Don McVey
Director of Finance
Dale Nielsen [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
In Vista we have a cancellation fee of $5 for recreation classes and events.
For some of our larger rental facilities (buildings in Parks, ect) the fee
is $25. For our two large facilities that are rented out for weddings and
large events, the cancellation fee is $300 if cancellation is done less than
3 months away form the event. Our recreation folks didn't indicate any kind
of difficulty in administering these fees.
Dale R. Nielsen
Finance Manager/Deputy City Treasurer
City of Vista
John Thornberry [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Crystal
At City of Carpinteria we charge a flat $10 processing fee. If the
requesting department does not want to charge the customer the fee we charge
the department. Requests for refunds must be made in writing and approved
by the department head.
john
Rose, Lori [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
The City of San Ramon does not have a cancellation fee.
Claudia Cauthorn [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Crystal: I will attempt to answer your questions:
1. Does your City have a cancellation fee for recreation classes/facility
rentals? If no, why not? Yes.
2. How is the cancellation fee structured: flat fee, % of tuition/facility
rental, sliding scale based on when cancellation is made? Please list your
cancellation fee amounts.
For classes: refunds less a $5 administrative fee will be given if
cancellation notice is received 7 days in advance of the class start date.
Cancellations or transfers with less than 7 days notice will not receive a
refund. Transfers are accepted from one class to another up to 7 days in
advance of the class start date. Medical emergencies are excepted from this
policy; however, a signed statement from your doctor is required.
For facilities: cancellations MUST be made in writing.
For the banquet halls:
a) cancellations received more than 4 months in advance of the scheduled use
will receive a full refund less a $75 cancellation fee and a $25 processing
fee
b) cancellations received 3 - 4 months in advance will receive a refund of
the amount paid less a $175 cancellation fee and a $25 processing fee.
c) cancellations received 2 - 3 months in advance will receive a refund of
only 50% of their facility use fees.
d) cancellations received 1 - 2 months in advance will receive a refund of
only 25% of their facility use fees.
e) cancellations received less than 1 month in advance will receive a refund
only of fees in excess of $500.
For all other facilities:
a) Cancellations received more than 2 weeks in advance of the scheduled use
will receive a refund of the full amount paid less a $25 cancellation fee
and a $25 processing fee.
b) if notification is received less than 2 weeks, but more than 24 hours in
advance, 25% of the facility use fee, plus $25 cancellation fee, plus $25
processing fee will be retained.
c) if cancellation is received less than 24 hours in advance, no refund will
be provided.
In either case, if the City cancels the class or facility use, all fees will
be refunded.
3. Have you experienced any difficulty in applying the cancellation fee (or
"policing" for it)? Most of our business is paid by credit cards or by
checks. Fees are due at the time of reservation. That means we are not in
the position of trying to collect a fee after the fact. Occasionally, we
have someone who is unhappy with the refund policy. Depending on the
circumstances (and how adamant they are) a greater refund might be given.
This is a judgment made by the Department Head and is on a case, by case
basis. The thinking is that a $25 refund is not worth the bad feelings that
customer may have toward the City, not the fact that they will likely spread
their dissatisfaction to a number of others and tarnish the City's image.
4. When you instituted a cancellation fee, which arguments did you use that
were most persuasive with your City Council?
The City Council was supportive of this arrangement. We indicated the number
of refunds we were generating yearly, and the amount of revenue that was
returned as a result of this process. We also estimated the cost to process
these refunds. The Council saw the economic sense of our proposal. These
fees are not unreasonable, and we demonstrated that by comparing our fees
with other agencies in our area.
Please contact me if you have any further questions.
Claudia Cauthorn
Recreation & Community Services Director
(408) 866-2106
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/>
We create community through people, parks & programs.
Sunny Shy [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Received information from Bob Powell our City's Finance Director regarding
your questions concerning the Parks and Recreation cancellation fees.
We currently provide refunds only when we cancel a class due to lack of
minimum registration or if we loose an instructor. The first choice is to
be rescheduled into another class if possible. After the second week of
class only an injury or proof of illness will we provide a refund, and then
we also we offer a credit for a class in the next registration.
We require deposits for rentals and if the facility is left in the manner
provided we mail back the deposit, if the facility is left in unacceptable
condition we hold back whatever portion is necessary.
Due to the amount of postage required to send back refunds/deposits and the
clerical time to get the check we are looking at a way to notify the client
and have them pick up their refund at the finance office instead of mailing.
We are also exploring the opportunity to use our software system to provide
web based registration, and of course the use of credit card service. This
ultimately will be the most customer oriented way to do business, hopefully
by next year we will be piloting one section of our department with this
service.
Hope this provides information on how we are dealing with the many issues
that come with providing revenue services and still keeping the customer
happy.
If you require additional information give me a call at (619) 585-5616 or
e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sunny Shy
Joanne Dimmett [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Hi. Your request for info. was forwarded to me:
Facility Rentals: We have two buildings that are made available to the
public. Renters pay up-front 30-days before their event for the room and
equipment rentals Without a 30-day notice of cancellation, we have the
right to retain all or a portion of the fees. In practice, if we have not
had to deny another user, or in a cases of extreme health or emergency, we
return the fees.
Recreation Classes: If we cancel, we provide a refund or, more preferably,
a credit that may be applied to another offering. If the participant
cancels, we also we try to give a credit rather than a refund but we will
issue a refund if the person doesn't want a credit. If a participant
cancels after attending a class that is part of a series [i.e. classes #1
and #2 of 8], we prorate the refund / credit due.
I hope this helps. We do not have so many cancellations that they are
problematic. In fact, for us, an adverse reaction of the public to being
charged for cancellations might prove counter productive to customer /
City-resident relations.
If you have questions or if I can provide further info. please call or
e-mail me: Joanne Dimmett, Interim Director of Community Services,
619.258.4100 ex. 125, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Turner, Rich [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
. Does your City have a cancellation fee for recreation classes/facility
> rentals? If no, why not? answer - cancel for no justifyable reason -
> withhold 25%
>
> 2. How is the cancellation fee structured: flat fee, % of
> tuition/facility
> rental, sliding scale based on when cancellation is made? Please list
> your
> cancellation fee amounts. answer - 25%
>
> 3. Have you experienced any difficulty in applying the cancellation fee
> (or
> "policing" for it)? Policy has been established and enforced by the
> Recreation and Parks Department.
>
> 4. When you instituted a cancellation fee, which arguments did you use
> that
> were most persuasive with your City Council?
>
>
Woods, Nancy [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Hi:
Bob Samario, our Assistant Finance Director, forwarded your inquiry to me.
If you would send me your FAX number, I will forward to you our recreation
class and facility rental cancellation/refund policies. In general, we
have a "customer satisfaction refund" and a prorated refund process.
Nancy
NANCY WOODS
Business Manager
Parks and Recreation Department
City of Santa Barbara
P.O. Box 1990
Santa Barbara, CA 93102-1990
805-897-2657 (Office)
805-564-5480 (FAX)
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************
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************
Crystal C. Alexander, CCMT
Deputy City Treasurer, City of Culver City
9770 Culver Blvd. Culver City, CA 90232
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.culvercity.org
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